ESPN to lay off more than 100 staffers for 2nd time in 2017

ESPN will lay off more than 100 staffers later this month, according to a Thursday report.
Sports Illustrated, citing multiple sources, reported the layoffs will occur after the Thanksgiving holidays and will include “front-facing talent” on the television side, along with producers, executives and members of ESPN’s digital team.
The layoffs come just months after the company laid off approximately 100 reporters and on-air personalities.
Two years ago, ESPN laid off about 300 employees, including longtime personalities that had been with the network for decades.
ESPN’s staple program since its inception, SportsCenter, is expected to be impacted particularly hard, according to Sports Illustrated, with layoffs including on-air hosts.
The network has recently been in the headlines for anchor’s comments on political issues and President Trump.
SportsCenter anchor Jemele Hill was suspended in September for violating the network’s social media guidelines. One of her tweets included calling Trump “a white supremacist” and resulted in a warning, while a subsequent tweet advising a boycott of advertisers of the Dallas Cowboys during the height of the national anthem controversy earned a two weeks suspension — reportedly with pay.
This play always work. Change happens when advertisers are impacted. If you feel strongly about JJ’s statement, boycott his advertisers. https://t.co/LFXJ9YQe74
— Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) October 8, 2017
Donald Trump is a white supremacist who has largely surrounded himself w/ other white supremacists.
— Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) September 11, 2017
It is not known if Hill will be included in the upcoming layoffs.
ESPN’s layoffs come as the network has considerably decreased in the number of U.S. households it can be seen in.
In 2011, the network could be seen in 100.13 million households compared with an estimated 87.5 million households in 2017 as primarily younger viewers engage in “cord-cutting” of more expensive cable television providers in favor of streaming services.
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